Creative Solutions for Glenrowan Solar Farm

Geosynthetic Solutions for Victorian Solar Farm

Glenrowan Solar Farm, Brefni, June 2020

PROJECT SNAPSHOT

The Glenrowan West Solar Farm is located between Benalla and Wangaratta, 11km southwest of the town of Glenrowan, Victoria.

This expansive project will cover more than 706 acres and comprise more than 373,000 solar panels. Once completed, the farm will have the capacity to generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of approximately 41,000 local homes and prevent 110,000 tons of CO2 emissions. During the peak construction phase, the project will create more than 350 jobs.

Jaybro’s customer Brefni was chosen as a key contractor to complete ground works preparing for the solar farm installation.

THE CHALLENGES

Following months of considerable rainfall, the main challenge Brefni faced was overly wet soil. With such soft ground, machinery and trucks couldn’t access the roads to start the project. This meant a considerable loss of time and outlay, with machinery sitting idle on site unable to be used because of the soil conditions.

The contractor needed a creative solution to get the project back on track quickly.

JAYBRO'S SOLUTION

Jaybro’s GEOmasta Consultant Braden Light suggested that the team make use of the temporary access tracks on site and build roads directly on top of the soil, rather than removing layers of soil and using traditional compaction techniques to establish a firm base.

Using this solution, the Brefni team could save time and ensure machinery and equipment could safely travel to key areas on site.
Roads were constructed using a combination of geofabric, grid and rock. This saved considerable time and money as geosynthetic materials were laid directly onto the soil without significant soil removal that would typically be seen in a standard installation.

The project is now progressing smoothly and is set to be completed in March 2021.

PRODUCT SPECS

• mastaTEX Non-woven
• mastaGRID Poly Biaxial

PROJECT DETAILS

Customer: Brefni

Project: Glenrowan West Solar Farm

Location: Wangaratta, VIC, Australia

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